


whatever lies beyond this morning

by quartzguts



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: F/M, First Kiss, not all that happy tbqh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 06:17:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17782160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quartzguts/pseuds/quartzguts
Summary: With the threat of war looming on the horizon, Gula and Ava try to distract each other.





	whatever lies beyond this morning

**Author's Note:**

> I didn't work on this as much as I wanted to but I don't have a lot of free time so... happy valentine's day.

“So, what’ll I get if I beat you?”

The two of them were sitting outside in the main courtyard of Daybreak Town, having just finished setting up their chess board. The sun was rising behind the Clock Tower, bathing the town with soft golden light. It wasn’t often the two of them were able to spend time alone, and Gula was more than thrilled that Ava had caught him earlier that morning and asked if he wanted to play a game. It was a welcome distraction. Ever since the Master had given them the Book of Prophecies, everyone had been on edge. No one wanted to talk about it, but the ominous passage on the last page was weighing heavily on their minds. The promise of war - one so violent it would destroy the peaceful serenity of their world - was a frightening thing.

Daybreak Town was always sleepy on Sunday mornings, so Ava had suggested that they play outside. Gula, preferring the cooler indoors but unable to say no to Ava’s puppy dog eyes, had agreed. Now, they were perched at the edge of the courtyard fountain, their masks set aside, and Ava was eagerly waiting to learn what she’d win from their game today.

“I don’t know why you insist on setting bets,” Gula replied easily. “I always win.”

“You mean you _almost_ always win,” Ava corrected him. “Who knows? Today I might get lucky!”

“Fine,” Gula said. “If I win, you do my chores for a month.”

“A month!” Ava exclaimed. “No way! A week at the most.”

“Alright, a week,” Gula said, poking at one of his pawns. He had lost their rock paper scissors match and was stuck with the black pieces. “What do you want?”

Ava put a hand to her chin as she thought. An idea chimed in the back of her mind and she smiled mischievously. “If I win, you have to kiss me.”

“Excuse me?” Gula said, taken aback. “Why?”

Ava giggled. “What’s the problem? After all, you always win, right?”

Gula smiled nervously. “That’s - of course I do. Alright then, it’s a deal.”

The game began. Gula was generally more skilled at board games than Ava, and the match seemed skewed in his favor from the get go. But he was getting distracted. Why Ava would ask for such a... an unusual prize was beyond him. She was always shy when it came to anything related to romance, and she definitely wasn’t the type to do tease people like this. Their lighthearted distraction was quickly causing Gula’s anxiety to rise.

Gula had been alone for most of his life. He liked having his solitude, liked being able to focus on himself instead of having to worry about others constantly. The Master and his fellow apprentices were the only ones he’d ever made an exception for. As such, they were the only friends he had in Daybreak Town.

He was at peace with that. Unfortunately, living in relative isolation meant there were a few things he had never had the opportunity to try. Like romance. Or kissing. As he glanced up at Ava’s face, his gaze caught on her soft looking lips, and he felt his cheeks redden.

He absolutely couldn’t let himself lose this game.

He put all of his focus into his moves, trying to ignore the way Ava curled her hair around her fingers as she watched him play and bit her lip when it was her turn. As the game went on, he found that he had made the mistake of focusing _too_ much, and now he was on the losing side.

Ava grinned and said “check mate” as she took the win.

Gula’s heart thudded against his rubs. “I can’t believe it,” he said quietly.

“Believe it! You lost,” Ava teased. “Now, I think you owe me my reward.”

Gula’s head snapped up. The light blush that had colored his cheeks since the game started had blossomed into a deep red that reached the tips of his ears. He looked utterly mortified. Ava’s smile faltered.

“If you don’t want to,” she said, still twirling her hair with her fingertips, “we don’t have to.”

“It’s fine,” Gula said quickly. “I’ll keep my end of the deal.”

“It’s okay,” Ava said. “I shouldn’t have pressured you into accepting the bet. I’m sorry.”

Gula shook his head. “I’m telling you, it’s fine. Let’s just get this over with.”

“But you don’t want to-“

“I accepted the bet, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, but-“

“Look,” Gula said sharply. He was staring at the board, resolutely refusing to look up. “I’m just... nervous. That’s all.”

Ava sat back, her eyebrows furrowing. She had never known her friend to be nervous about anything. Or at least, she had never known him to admit it. “What do you mean?” She asked.

“I’ve just....” Gula raised his eyes to Ava’s face. “I’ve never kissed anyone before.”

“What?” Ava gasped. “You’re just messing with me, right?”

Gula cleared his throat and looked down again.

“...you’re not joking,” Ava said in awe. “You’ve really never-“

“I haven’t, alright?” Gula said shortly, crossing his arms. “Now please just let me-“

“Wait,” Ava said. If they didn't talk this out now, they'd both be embarrassed and awkward around each other for the rest of the day. If that happened, then Invi would notice and ask about it, and then she’d tell Ira, and Ira would tell Aced, and Aced would tell Luxu, and _he_ would tell the Master, and then the Master would tease them about it til the end of time. It would be awful. “Let’s just talk about this, okay?”

“What’s there to talk about? I lost,” Gula said, resolutely refusing to look Ava in the eyes. She frowned. It rarely happened, but when Gula got really upset, it was near impossible to get him to cheer up. He would stubbornly refuse all attempts to console him until he got over it on his own. There had been times when one of the others had accidentally offended them and they were given the silent treatment for over a week. She had never been the one to upset him that badly, though. Guilt sunk deep in her stomach.

“I’m sorry,” she said carefully. She knew she had to choose her words wisely. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I was only surprised.”

“Surprised,” Gula echoed curiously. “Why? Do I _look_ like the kind of person who gets around?”

“Yes!” Ava exclaimed. At Gula’s appalled expression, she backtracked. “I mean, no - it’s just, you’re really attractive, so I thought for sure you’d have kissed someone before.”

Gula started blushing again. “You,” he said, “think I’m attractive?”

Ava nodded, her own face burning as well. The two sat for a while, looking down at the chessboard between them.

“Well,” Gula said, his voice soft. “I suppose I owe you that kiss, huh?”

“Yeah,” Ava said breathlessly. “If you want to.”

Ava thought for sure that the Clock Tower stopped ticking when Gula leaned in. She met him halfway, and when his lips pressed against her’s they were warm and soft. She shifted a little to better press up against him, and he slid his hand onto her cheek. In that moment, the war seemed impossibly far away. Like it would never reach them.

They pulled apart when the Clock Tower started striking its bell. The kiss must have only lasted a few seconds, but Ava felt dizzy, like she’d been underwater for hours. Gula looked similarly hazy.

He spoke first. “So, why did you ask for that?”

The question took a second to register with Ava. “Oh!” She gasped with the realization that she had been staring at his lips. “Um. It was something the Master said to me.”

“The Master,” Gula said slowly. “Told you to kiss me.”

“No! I mean, not really,” Ava sputtered. “He just - I mean - he said that I should ask for something other than sweets or pretty gems as a bet. He said, ‘make him kiss you or something!’ and I remembered it when you asked about the bet, so....” she trailed off. “...it was nice.”

Gula nodded. “Yeah,” he said, silently thanking the Master for his endless wisdom. “It was.”

The two of them looked at each other.

“Wanna do it again?”

“Yes please.”

-

Later, when Gula begged Ava for help and she refused him, he didn’t think badly of her. How could he? Just as she had her role to fulfill, he had his. It should have been obvious from the start that they would never last. The Book said it plain and clear; a war would transpire. They'd just been too naive to see that it would be of their own making.

Ava watched unsteadily as Gula drifted away from her. Of all the things she regretted, falling in love with him was not one of them.


End file.
